Stop pretending
by yume girl 91
Summary: Life with a runaway Shinigami shouldn't have been hard. But given the personality of Kei...things could get difficult. Ulqui/oc sequel to The one you left behind
1. Chapter 1

**He sensed the Hollow even before he realized her missing. She'd left Getsu-ten behind, the ubiquitous white scarf draped neatly on top of her bag. He was used to the amorphous Zanpaku-to by now. Along with the particular quirks its wielder possessed.**

**He Sonido-ed across the city, haste drawing his lips into a frown of worry. Kei sat in a rusted swing, her feet dangling above the ground by a good few inches. The sun in its setting light enveloped the Shinigami in a halo of radiance. Her head was down and as his eyes swept past her, a feeble twitch caught his attention. A bloodied mass of shrinking skin and charred mask told him all he needed to know.**

**_She did not need his help_.**

"**Worried about me?" **

**Her voice cut the silence. Ulquiorra turned; Kei was looking at him, a peculiar smile on her face. "I was not concerned about you in the slightest," he answered in a dull monotone drawing her eyebrow up. **

"**Really? Then what's my sword doing in your hand?" **

**Kei was sarcastic to a fault, increasingly so as with her avid questions. His fingers tightened on the transformed Zanpaku-to, no longer pretending to be a harmless scarf. Kei was waiting for his reply, her head cocked at an odd angle. Ulquiorra closed his eyes for a moment then felt a palm slide along his cheekbone. She was standing in front of him, her arms curving upward around his neck. **

**Surprised, he flinched when she suddenly kissed him. Roughly, demandingly, not hesitating to let him feel her need. Kei ran her fingers through his hair, leaning in, pressing her hips against his suggestively. They collapsed in a heap on the ground, tangled in each other's arms. Getsu-ten was folded beneath her shoulder blade as the silk scarf. Ulquiorra discovered her legs were tight around his waist, securing her hold on him.**

**_This was strange_…**

**_He'd never known his Shinigami to be so…lustful_.**

**_She'd always evaded intimate contact between them; a touch on the arm or a gentle smile was the extent of her affections. But now_…**

**Her moan was stifled, breaking the contact. Her face was flushed, her violet eyes blinked, the feathery lashes lowering in concealed embarrassment. _She was ashamed_? Kei breathed in through her mouth, saliva slicking her lips. She slid away from him, wrapping her left arm loosely over her stomach. **

**He didn't like her quietness. **

"**Stop pretending."**

"**What?"**

"**You heard me."**

"**Well I don't understand, silly Hollow!" **

**Kei grinned, her former Joie de vive restored. Ulquiorra wasn't fooled. He knew something was bothering the runaway Shinigami; _was it the fact that he was a Hollow_?**

**_Did he disgust her_?**

"**You loathe me and cannot bear to touch me because of what I am." he said matter-of-factly.**

"**That's not true," she murmured.**

"**Then what is?"**

**~~~~*~~~~**

Kei the Shinigami's p.o.v

I knew better than to start with one of those (it's not you, it's me) speeches. They never end well. The truth is oddly enough exactly that. It is me.

Me and the reluctance I have to show you my scars.

**~~~~*~~~~**

"**It's not you, believe me." Kei looked him in the eye, her thumb stroking his lower lip. **

"**Someday I'll show them to you. Now isn't the time. We have more…pressing matters to contend with," she indicated with a jerk of her head, the approaching combined reiatsus of three survey Shinigamies, after her no doubt. **

**~~~Finis.1~~~**

**A/N: don't own Bleach. Just something random that popped into my head while thinking of Kei-san. :) Note: placement four months after the war had been won and the alt ending of The one you left behind. **


	2. Chapter 2

Her movements were fast, graceful even. Lethality had always been commingled with delicacy in fluid, liquid grace in the Hakudo she applied with fervor to the surrounding Shinigamies. Her elbow cracked back into the face of one while her knee became embedded in the chest of another.

Kei smiled a little, secretly, for the knowledge drilled into every fiber of her being was put to the use of defeating the very people she'd been deemed to protect, _the residents of Soul society_. Her small hands wrapped tightly over the arm of one as he placed the edge of a Kusari Gama to her throat. She flipped him with ease forward, balancing his large body for an instant on her outstretched leg, giving a deft snap to the offending wrist.

The curved scythe blade fell to the ground, the man's screams halted by a backhand to the neck.

Kei dusted her hands off; they seemed to be weaker by the day. Stealth force maybe not. Recruits for the punishment division, maybe. With a sigh, she turned to the last two, a young redheaded girl; her jaw was hanging at her comrades' defeat and a tall orange-haired boy, who looked grimly upon the scene before them.

"Care for a try?" Kei offered the girl. Bravely she flash-stepped forward, long Tachi withdrawn from its sheath. Kei raised an eyebrow, her own flash step taking her out of reach of the narrow swipe that cut the air. The boy tensed, ready to jump in at any time, this annoyed her severely.

_Have a little faith in your comrade's abilities_, she thought, taking a slit to her forearm for show. Red drizzled to the ground, staining the green of the grass. One of the downed Shinigamies, groaned, his arm flopping onto his sweating face. _She hadn't killed any of them, just stunned their nerves to take away mobility_.

Her arm shot out, knocking awry the strike aimed with speed for her face. The girl's delicate equilibrium was displaced; Kei took advantage of it and kneed her in the stomach. A soft gasp and then eyelids fluttered over glazing eyes. _It worked almost every time_.

The boy reached for his huge sword strung across his back, the white wrappings came off of it, tying around his hands. Kei shot him a glance, unworried, as a faint light enveloped the bleeding cut on her arm, healing it with a quickness that caused him to deduce her Kido abilities were as high as her knowledge of Hakudo.

Kei half-turned away, a teasing smile lit her features; "I bet I know who you are. Kurosaki, right?"

Ichigo was taken aback, _how did she know who he was?_

"You came in someone else's stead. But really don't know what you're up against. They only told you a minute detail about a renegade Shinigami with dangerous powers—_or did they forget to mention dangerous_?" her smile changed into a slow grin that albeit facial differences aside reminded him of Yoruichi.

"None of your business. I've been ordered to bring you in as a favor to someone else. So just fight!"

"Tsk. So impatient…but that's what I like about you, little Guardian. Your willingness to go all out for something." Kei slid her fingers through the white fabric binding her hair up into a loose chignon. It unraveled, becoming a sword with a large crescent moon guard. "Shall we play then?" she questioned, a sharp breeze gusted behind her, freeing her long tawny hair into a whirling cloud framing her face.

"Getsuga Tenshou!"

"Tsukisasu, Getsu-ten."

~~~*~~~

Ulquiorra restrained the quirk that twitched his coal black eyebrow as his Shinigami flash-stepped into the clearing, tottering a few paces before tossing a familiar orange-haired boy onto the ground near him. Kei stood over the inert deputy Shinigami, her eyes doing a quick scan over the gaping circular wound in the middle of Kurosaki's chest…_where his heart was._

"Crap," she muttered softly, immediately dropping down to administer Kido. He didn't bother asking what had happened, it was clear that she had been the winner of the battle yet he couldn't understand just why she had to bring his—their enemy to their campsite and be…_healing him._

His Shinigami was still indeed just as peculiar as before.

~~~*~~~

"Ugh. Where am I?" Ichigo opened his eyes to stare up at a lightening sky, morning not far away. "Here, drink this," spoke a gentle female voice to his right. He obeyed, taking the tiny bowl proffered and drinking deeply of the medicinal drought it contained. "What was it?" he asked, when able to. His tongue still tasted the sharp tang of the ground herbs on the roof of his mouth.

Kei kneeled beside him, her smile friendly, "Shogayu: tea of the river of life. It's a special blend kept for healing in the circle of certain Noble houses. It's really quite effective for purifying wounds and cleansing the mind of tiredness." Ichigo raised himself up, not wanting to lie back while she sat there. A throb convulsed his shoulder; weakly he slumped back down, a scowl crossing his face.

"I'm sorry it was quite a wound I dealt you." Kei apologized, patting the bandages swaddling his chest for emphasis. A flush came onto his cheeks with the knowledge of; _it was her who had healed him_. Indeed he had been stripped from the waist up, his black Shihakusho draped neatly off to the side.

He felt her fingers slide under the wrapping on his left side, passing lightly over his nipple. He jolted, unable to stop his face from reddening anymore than it already had. _What the heck was wrong with him_? Kei chuckled, his embarrassment amusing her. "How old are you?" she began, the questioning gleam—Ulquiorra rightly would've recognized as her thousand questions mood coming on.

"Uh…Sixteen."

"Oh, honey! I'm just way too old for you!"

His confusion was evident since she appeared no older than Rukia or maybe…a teensy bit closer to Renji. Therefore, her answer shocked him clearly. "Three hundred? Hmm…make three-twenty to be on the safe side. I don't look it—I know. My clan is extremely long-lived; youth doesn't diminish the way it does among other families. So let's say…nineteen in human age. _Way too old_," Kei shook her head sadly.

"Uh huh. But why the heck did you take care of me? I'm supposed to be your enemy—"

"Exactly my point," interrupted a _very familiar_ deep voice.

"Ah, Ulquiorra, you're back," Kei said, twisting a little to smile up at the former Espada. His emotionless eyes traveled past her, settling like a dead weight on Ichigo. Almost immediately he tensed up, the two males intense dislike of each other fueling the animosity between them. Kei fanned her face lightly, remarking dryly on the heated temperatures in the forest.

Ulquiorra broke eye contact first, "I have the Eucalyptus you wanted."

"Oh, thanks. Just set it with the others," she waved him away, eager to increase her questions. She helped Ichigo sit up, propped up by assorted pillows on a sort of rolled mat. Ulquiorra had stayed back as Kei has wished him to, his green eyes watchful, distrusting of the deputy Shinigami. Uncomfortably, Ichigo tried not to look the Arrancar's way, sensing more than just dislike beneath the cold exterior.

_Was Ulquiorra jealous_?

Kei had gathered the roll of gauze from a small bag close at hand, round-headed clippers for snipping the thin material and a dried poultice of herbs, he assumed, was the Shogayu. She then proceeded to administer to the reddened skin, the wound almost entirely healed. Her hands moved, quickly, efficiently as she cleaned the area first with a dab of the poultice, leaving behind a tiny trail of sweet smelling herbs.

He held still, trying hard not to flinch when she leaned in a little closer, a strand of hair dangling before her eyes. _Violet_, he realized, _a deep, royal purple, more beautiful than any others' he'd seen_. Kei worked fast, her fingers running along the faint scar, evoking a slight tremor from his body.

"So…Kurosaki, where do you live?"

"In Karakura town in my dad's house," he answered a little hesitantly.

"Do you have plans for College? If so which one?"

"Not really."

"When you eventually die will you join the Soul academy for the six year curriculum?"

"Do I have to?"

"It's required by almost all members of the thirteen court guard squads," Kei informed solemnly. Ichigo raised an orange eyebrow, "you sure ask a lot of questions."

"I do, don't I? Just habit I guess. Oh by the way, you can address me as Kei, not Keiko or whatever they told you to. Nobility can be pretty high-strung on the rules," she chuckled, making him think of Byakuya. "Yeah, you're right," he agreed, smiling a little. The Shinigami suddenly clapped her palms together, looking somewhat aggrieved, "I'm sorry! You must be starved! Here I've been blabbering away—"

"Kei," Ulquiorra interrupted her bantering.

Their eyes met, violet and green in a sense of mutual understanding.

Words needless for the unusual pair.

Ichigo knew then at that moment, Kei had forgotten he was there; _it was only the pale green-eyed Arrancar she saw, and nothing else_.

"I know," She said simply.

~~~*~~~

Ulquiorra's p.o.v

_I could see Kurosaki didn't understand what Kei saw in me._

_I couldn't understand it myself._

_She gave up everything for me._

_Family._

_Purpose._

_To live the entirety of her remaining life with me; what we have is forbidden._

_Completely and utterly it is wrong._

_To let her go would be the right path, I know._

~~~*~~~

Kei the Shinigami's p.o.v

_Sometimes I don't understand what Ulquiorra thinks._

_Silly Hollow._

_He believes it better to let me go back with Kurosaki._

_Why?_

_Idiot Hollow!_

_So he can meander around all alone until some random Shinigami gets lucky and annihilates his pitiful existence?!_

_Hell no!_

_When he said my name, I tried my hardest to prove it._

_Prove the validity of my love for him…until he nodded._

_The decision wouldn't be made right now._

~~~*~~~

Kei wasn't a scary cook, Ichigo found out. She wasn't no Orihime as in kitchen terror—her face prettier than most and immense strength that didn't quite fit her tiny form. Being served eggs Benedict, he discovered the peculiar Shinigami had definite merits in her favor.

"How was it?" she asked excitedly, when he'd finished.

"As good as my sister's—or better," he complimented, noticing Ulquiorra's glare.

_The Arrancar was definitely jealous_.

Kei beamed happily, clearing away her dish and his.

_Was it that he couldn't partake of her cooking and was upset by Ichigo's ability to enjoy it_?

"I'll go scout the area," Ulquiorra announced abruptly, spinning on his heel and Sonidoing out of the area. Kei glanced up, hearing his words, her lips parted to say something then seeing him gone, shook her head sadly. "He still wants me to go back…why?" she murmured to herself. Ichigo heard her soft tone and downcast eyes, feeling a twinge of sympathy as the Shinigami felt herself rejected.

"He despises the world for living when he's not," The deputy Shinigami said philosophically. Kei clutched the striped hand towel, "but I'm here. I'm with him—isn't that enough?"

"You're a Shinigami. He's an Arrancar. He doesn't see the world the way you do. To him, he cannot give anything to you; he can only take. He sees himself as nothing while you are everything. Your simple gestures—things meant to show your care for him—only drive in the realization of what he is—"

"He simply…doesn't understand," Kei said, her head shaking when he looked at her curiously.

"Just forget it. Forget I ever spoke a word in my life."

~~~*~~~

Kei the Shinigami's p.o.v

_I never used to be this way—seemingly curious about everything. No. I was quieter, reserved, and too shy to simply ask a perfect stranger just why the sun rose every morning. Isolation and the deadly silence that filled that room was what drove me to it._

_I remember how it began, the unnatural quiet rang in my ears, I folded my legs tighter; the smooth white fabric of the plain Yukata wrinkling over my abdomen as the obi cut into me. I whimpered, the gathering shadows in the corners caused fear to rise sharply in my throat. I was alone, so alone in that sealed off wing_.

_Suddenly in the midst of my mental torment, I thought of my own voice, and spoke._

_Talked aloud of what I'd been brought for my early meal, the many colors of my Cousin's Kimonos, the plain white I'd been sentenced to in those early years brought a grimace to my face. Then, I started reciting what knowledge I knew. Very little for I'd lived away from the hustle and bustle of Royal life, kept in a cage like the bird in the songs._

_A gilded bird in a cage_…

_Once I'd gotten through the entirety of my learned memories, I came up with the idea of asking questions so that I would never be over with what I knew so fast. I could go on and on_…

_No one understood after that just why I acted the way I did. _

_Asking questions of anybody who happened to be permitted in my presence._

_And after a while…it became a habit._

_I never stopped._

~~~*~~~

Kei stared unseeingly at the black beetle inching across the muddy ground. Her knees were drawn up, her back against a tree trunk. Images floated through her mind, faces of those she'd known and once sworn to defend. _I'm no longer one of them, though_. _Seireitei wouldn't forgive a traitor, no matter the reasons for her departure from their world. She'd die on Sokyoku hill—or—be kept in total isolation while Ulquiorra was hunted down_.

_Their assumption would be that once the negative pollutant was removed, she'd forget, not knowing how to grieve in the first place and again be their pet-project; their prize_. _The defender when there was no one else left to defend_. _An enigma from the start, now impossible to cage like before. _

Kei refused it.

She would not go back.

~~~*~~~

Ulquiorra's p.o.v

_The Shinigami doesn't understand my reasons for wanting her to go back, she refuses to look at me anymore. _

_Upset, I believe, for she thinks me base enough to hurt her this way by denying her affections. _

_She is across the clearing right now, sitting against a tree trunk staring into nothing. Kurosaki keeps looking at her strangely, probably still unable to figure out why we're here together this way. _

_I don't know either._

~~~*~~~

Kei the Shinigami's p.o.v

_He was the one who extended his hand to me, asked me to come with him and yet now…insinuates that this isn't right? I don't understand anything anymore. Disturbingly, I find this a particularly unpleasant feeling. _

_I've always known everything._

_My inner knowing rivaling that of great Masters of divinatory oracles; but now I can't see anything…_

_The future is veiled._

_And maybe it is exactly what I deserved for crossing the impenetrable line between Shinigami and Hollow._

_What should never have been breached._

_Falling in love with one._

~~~To be continued~~~

A/N: poor Kei's all messed up and Ulqui's not helping. :P tomorrow we have to attend my Cousin's wedding :b ick. Anyhow cheers and hope you enjoyed this chappie! Please review :)


	3. Chapter 3

Ichigo could sense the underlying tension in the air. Kei sat farther away from them, her back against a tree, her arms folded on the tops of her knees. _He wondered curiously what she was thinking so hard of?_ Ulquiorra had returned from scouting the area, entering the barrier Kei had placed over parts of the forest. Shinigami and Arrancar hadn't spoken a word to each other, nor touched once.

They communicated by silence, her eyes filled with meaning—_tenderness that almost made Ichigo jealous, for Rukia would never dream of looking at him like that_. Ulquiorra of course, could not dredge up even interest, his blatant refusal causing her expression to darken and precipitating her retreat to the other end of the clearing.

A leaf crackled and then she stood before the former Espada, "I will not go back. You _cannot_ force me." Her quiet tone held strength that did not waver once when she addressed Ichigo, "tell Soul society they may send thousands after me. I swear to defeat them all—no matter who. I will not hesitate again."

"That is your answer?" Ichigo asked, remembering Byakuya the next to be sent if he failed. The Kuchiki Noble wouldn't stop at simply being knocked unconscious by Hakudo; Senbonzakura alone would be a challenge for the runaway Shinigami. "It is," Kei answered steadily, her expression set in grim determination.

"Fine. I'll tell Ukitake what you said earlier—it'll make him happy."

~~~*~~~

Kei the Shinigami's p.o.v

'_I remember this'_ along with a foil-wrapped chocolate sprinkle candy.

_He'd know_, I'm sure when the little guardian gives it to him, _he'll remember that day_.

_It doesn't worry me so much to think that if it had been Ukitake sent to retrieve me as Ichigo came in his place, that I'd have been loathe to fight the frail Captain. I mean c'mon! I'm not that sentimental! …Well…maybe I am. I closed my eyes all at once sensing something coming on—a vision. Of the future…_

_Pale pink petals flowing in a vortex spiral obeying the command of a handsome raven-haired man: Byakuya Kuchiki…damn. It ended. To my dismay I wasn't allowed to see the finale. Who would win and who would lose…was the question turned over in my thoughts as the days steadily progressed. Until I'm not sure where the time went, it seemed to simply flow through my hands like the sand of a broken hourglass_.

~~~*~~~

Ulquiorra's p.o.v

_He left us with the knowledge of his betrayal. He would tell Soul society where we were at—but also the direction in which he assumed we would move. He told us to go the opposite way. Kei looked thoughtful but I could see she wasn't really listening, most likely she would head out alone to face the new Shinigamies sent._

_She did not refute my suspicions only saying that I was too damn sharp for my own good. _

_She would leave me and fight them herself._

_To protect me…_

_To protect a Hollow as she had done before._

_I do not deserve her._

~~~*~~~

Kei tied the new sash of Getsu-ten cross-body length, the black standing out against the violet kimono top, the sleeves bell shaped and reaching her elbows. Her pants were loose on the leg, flowing easily reminding her of the Hakama from the Shihakusho and on her feet she'd chosen a pair of flat-heeled boots that wrapped up her calves with shiny oval buckles.

Pushing hair from her face, she thoughtfully scanned the faraway area for the reiatsus of the Shinigamies whom had entered the world looking for her. _If Ulquiorra had been awake_…Kei Shunpo-ed to the Arrancar's sleeping form. Stepping inside her Kido barrier, she knelt over him. Sure she had played dirty…suddenly smothering him in a brief kiss and imparting the sleeping pill—Kei grinned to herself unwillingly. _He hadn't known what was coming_. Besides it being specifically designed by a certain ex Captain for when examinations on Hollows were necessary…_maybe she had overdosed him_?

Kei bent low, the lingering warmth from her own body fading away in his arms. She smiled, brushing a gentle kiss on his forehead, her fingers stroking his black locks. "I'm doing this to stay with you," she spoke, knowing he probably couldn't hear her. Ulquiorra stirred but a little disappointedly Kei didn't think he said her name…_it sounded like_…

"Don't judge me too harshly," she reached for the crescent moon guard, vanishing in an instant.

..._Shinigami_.

~~~*~~~

"Scatter, Senbonzakura."

Kei swung her sword sideways, yelling, "Maoen!" Rarely did she summon the living flames from the depths of hell, for a good reason. A shield of cherry blossoms shielded the Kuchiki Noble from the worst of the attack. Landing with a tiny tmp in the scarred earth, Kei wrapped her hands tightly around the bound hilt, her silent movements unreadable to him. She came up from behind, aiming to deal a solid swipe to the back of his neck, her sword slashed through air.

"No…" she slammed into the ground, Getsu-ten's blade stabbing the brown earth, a shadow passed overhead and Kei barely managed to flip it out in time, bracing her left fist to the side of the tang with Senbonzakura and the full weight of her wielder bearing down. His reiatsu became stifling as he released the entirety of it to make her submit. Kei tilted her head back, sweat running in tiny rivulets from her scalp onto the collar of her blouse, she saw the sheer will present in the man's flinty gray eyes, only now she realized the outcome of the vision.

_She would lose_.

"N-n-no. I-I- can't!" Kei breathed in, her voice growing hoarse, suddenly her body caved in at the solar plexus, Getsu-ten slipped, thudding the ground. Byakuya sensing her weakness dove in for the last strike. _Sakura petals…floating to the ground_, _of course_…

The other darted in, his swift kick distancing the Kuchiki Noble, arms scooped her up, laying her heavily onto a broad shoulder. A flaring aqua blue light beam sheared the ground, creating a cavernous rent; Kei shut her eyes against the brightness. _This strength, this…body and that…attitude!_

"Take that, you fucking cocksucker!"

_Grimmjow_.

Soon they had left the battlefield, an explosion of concentrated Cero hiding their flight. Kei was jostled rudely every few minutes—probably to make sure she was still breathing as affirmed by her groan and the former Sexta's sigh of relief. "Damn you," she hissed after the last jerk on her bruised ribs caused her to cough weakly. Grimmjow chuckled, "look who's talking, ya fuckin' weakling!"

"Put me—oomph!"

He stopped at a copse of trees bordering a cliff. The sea was close, as she could smell the tangy air; Grimmjow hefted her from his shoulder and tossed her down carelessly. "Yeah, yeah. Whine all ya want! —If not for that stupid bastard threatening me then I'd—"

"Wait. Ulqui—"

"Of course, stupid. Why else would I rescue someone like you from—"

"Quit interrupting me," Kei ordered, glaring daggers at the teal-haired Arrancar. Grimmjow looked about to object, his rude habits competing with the tiny touch of honor still lurking somewhere inside. In the end, he kept quiet, crossing his arms over his chest to show his displeasure. He didn't wear the hated white Espada uniform anymore, instead unusually normal appearing in plain jeans and a shirt. His reiatsu seemed to be repressed since she couldn't feel it no matter how she tried. Which admittedly wasn't much.

"I didn't know that you were still alive—I thought that—"

"After the fall of Las Noches, we'd been slaughtered, right?"

"Yes. Ulquiorra had followed me to the forest of the Menos where we fought and I…"

"Lost. Just as we did. That woman—Inoue, healed you. You were found unconscious and halfway dead by some Shinigami guards watching over the captured Exequias. I figure he must've left you with them knowing that as far as Soul society went—you were the hero."

Kei frowned a little; biting her lip and tasting acrid sweetness, "don't say that."

"But it's true," Grimmjow persisted, "at least up until the room in Las Noches where Inoue was taking care of you—was found by Ulquiorra. I heard he did quite a number on the guards before reaching the door." The former Espada grinned ferally, reminding her of just _what_ she was dealing with.

"He took you away from there and started this whole mess of them trying to take you back. Ridiculous over a single pathetic Shinigami—just like when pet-sama was rescued by her friends…I'll never understand the bonds of the—"

"You're wrong, Grimmjow."

"What?"

"They _don't_ want me back _because_ they miss me."

The bitterness in her tone was clear, his brow knit together as he tried piecing apart her words, "—but if they don't really care then why--?"

"I am their weapon." She finished quietly, feeling a reiatsu as familiar as her own appear on the other side of the line of trees. Ulquiorra Sonido-ed to them, his expression, stony, unreadable. "What took you so long?" Kei kept her voice light, "Grimmjow's not much company!"

The former Espadas stared at one another for a moment. The latter being Grimmjow, still puzzling over the peculiar Shinigami's last sentence to him; _what did she mean?_ Ulquiorra broke contact with the Sexta and glanced to Kei, she sat on the ground, a part of her sleeve was scorched and bloodstains were on the front fold of the kimono top. She noticed him looking and hastily rubbed her hand over the spot, "it's nothing serious," she reassured, "Kuchiki's blade didn't even touch me. It was his—"

"You're a fool," he stated plainly.

Her eyebrows shot up, "excuse me? I'm the fool? How so?"

"You simply are." Infuriatingly, Ulquiorra refused to elaborate. Kei got to her feet; unable to hide the wince that stemmed from the all battles she'd been through recently. "If you were there…I wouldn't be able to concentrate on what I had to do," she mumbled to the ground. Ulquiorra heard, but chose not to reply, _he wouldn't steady her as she walked toward him, he wouldn't demand she let him share the burdens buried in her soul…he couldn't_.

_He could not feel empathy for her._

_His hands_, he mused, as Kei reached him, leaning into his chest for support, _would never be gentle_.

~~~*~~~

"Hey!" Grimmjow yelled before they departed.

Ulquiorra waited expectantly.

"You didn't reward me for saving that Shinigami!"

Kei had one arm laced over his back, her head was drooping and her breaths were labored; _it was obvious that she wasn't alright_. Green eyes turned, a glint of amusement lightening the dark depths, "thank you." He said simply, knowing that he'd just left the former Sexta floored.

Who'd have thought the Cuatro Espada would ever say _thank you_?

Definitely not Grimmjow…

~~~To be continued~~~

:) Sleepy but I did it! Whoot! Ahem :) please review!

Note: The Espada could communicate telepathically to one another; Ulquiorra sensed Grimmjow closer to where Kei was at and threatened him into compliance. The pic I had of Kei vanished in a massive cleanout of my comp's system D: disaster! Sorry. I'll have to get another one…


	4. Chapter 4 Contradiction

~~~Contradiction~~~

Kei lay on the slanted rooftop, her face turned up to the starry heavens above. Her expression apathetic, the silence filling in between the Shinigami and Arrancar none the least troubling, _it wasn't the time for questions_. Slowly, her head rolled a little to the side, to look into his empty eyes.

"Ulqui-or-orra…"

"What?"

She tilted her head back, pillowed by her loose hair, "would you mourn me if I died?"

"Don't be ridiculous," he answered in annoyance; _she was already of the dead_.

"No. I mean—really died. Died as in I'd be gone forever. Would you miss me?"

"No," he said simply.

Though he was lying.

"Oh. Thought so."

~~~Argument~~~

"Ulquiorra…"

". . ."

"Say you love me."

He simply stared, uncomprehending the turn Kei's thoughts had taken.

"C'mon. Don't be shy! Say it!!!"

"No."

"No? Then you don't love me?"

"No. I need not repeat myself again. Once is enough."

The Shinigami pouted, "I was dying when you said it. I want you to tell me again!"

"You were not dying," was his plaintive answer.

"Yes I was!"

"That's impossible for you are already of the dead."

Chagrined, Kei's lips compressed into a firm line, "with you I can't win any argument." When she moved away to start preparing her supper, a tiny smile quirked his stoic features.

~~~Contradiction~~~

Note: I have the real chapter 4 started but since I found this buried in my docs I decided to post it. (Argument) I'm thinking I wrote it during my Cousin's wedding in May. :P very long time ago. Thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated. :)


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